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"I Need a New PC!" 2015 Part 1. Read the OP and RISE ABOVE FORGED PRECISION SCIENCE
- Thread starter Hazaro
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Hey guys, currently looking at the EVGA step up program.. I currently have a 970 SSC ACX 2.0+ and I want to step up to a GTX 980TI. Thing is, I just noticed that you can only use the step up for reference card.
Is there any difference between a reference and a non reference card except the clock speed ? I mean, can I overclock the reference and hope to achieve the same clock speed as the non reference cards ?
Is there any difference between a reference and a non reference card except the clock speed ? I mean, can I overclock the reference and hope to achieve the same clock speed as the non reference cards ?
Brawndo Addict
Banned
So I've got enough cash in the old slush fund to do another upgrade computer wise. I've got a few different options available to me and wondered what people thought be the best bang for the buck. Currently I have an i5-750 OC'd to 3.6 (couldn't get it stable enough at 3.8 or 4.0) and a gtx 970. I'd have replaced my CPU earlier but the motherboard's socket isn't compatible with the newer chips.
My first thought was that I could replace my motherboard and buy a new cpu since that's probably my most immediate bottleneck. I'm kind of reluctant to do so because replacing the entire motherboard is such a hassle compared to just the CPU, but I'd still do it.
The other thought was I could upgrade my monitor from 1080p to something with 1440p and Gsync. I feel like I don't have the performance to do 1440p natively yet, plus it seems like the market for these monitors is pretty hit and miss with regards to QC.
Finally, I have the sort of lazy option which is to just sell my 970 and upgrade to a Fury or Ti, or even just go SLI with a 970.
It seems like every category I'm considering though is waiting on new releases or something to that effect, so it might be better to just hold off until later in the year and make a decision then.
My first thought was that I could replace my motherboard and buy a new cpu since that's probably my most immediate bottleneck. I'm kind of reluctant to do so because replacing the entire motherboard is such a hassle compared to just the CPU, but I'd still do it.
The other thought was I could upgrade my monitor from 1080p to something with 1440p and Gsync. I feel like I don't have the performance to do 1440p natively yet, plus it seems like the market for these monitors is pretty hit and miss with regards to QC.
Finally, I have the sort of lazy option which is to just sell my 970 and upgrade to a Fury or Ti, or even just go SLI with a 970.
It seems like every category I'm considering though is waiting on new releases or something to that effect, so it might be better to just hold off until later in the year and make a decision then.
I've been planning on building a new rig for a while now, and I've just been picking up pieces as I see them on sale.
A seemingly good deal just popped up on Amazon (via SlickDeals: here):
16GB (2x8GB) PNY XLR8 DDR3 1866 CAS Cl9 Desktop Memory for $65
or
16GB (2x8GB) PNY XLR8 DDR3 2133 CAS 10 Desktop Memory for $70
Not really clued in on what the big difference is here (or if there is one if I plan on using the machine mainly for gaming). Is more information needed to give a real opinion on what to go with here?
A seemingly good deal just popped up on Amazon (via SlickDeals: here):
16GB (2x8GB) PNY XLR8 DDR3 1866 CAS Cl9 Desktop Memory for $65
or
16GB (2x8GB) PNY XLR8 DDR3 2133 CAS 10 Desktop Memory for $70
Not really clued in on what the big difference is here (or if there is one if I plan on using the machine mainly for gaming). Is more information needed to give a real opinion on what to go with here?
Those are idle settings, we need to see how fast and hot your graphics card is when it's running at load. Show us the time graph from MSI Afterburner or GPU-Z.
I found this picture of a Diamond R9 290X with the NZXT Kraken G10 bracket. I am not sure whether that is the reference board R9 290X or not, though. If you can take a look at the back of your graphics card and compare layout and size, maybe you can tell if it's the same card and therefore if it would support the Kraken G10 or not.
Where does it say that? On the step up program webpage, the only GTX 980 Ti model listed as being available is the twin fan ACX2.0+ non-reference model (06G-P4-4991-KR).
Hmm.. So the only difference between this card and the SSC version os the clocking speed ? Nothing else ? If that's the case, I might pull the trigger then.
This would be the EVGA reference model GTX 980 Ti, it has a stock speed of 1000MHz. Other companies also produce reference model GTX 980 Ti with very minor slight differences, like this Gigabyte GTX 980 Ti reference model which just has a slightly different boost clock speed (Gigabyte has 1075MHz boost while EVGA's has 1067MHz boost).
There's no SSC edition. There's the normal speed edition (06G-P4-4991-KR), the SC edition (06G-P4-4993-KR), and the SC+ edition (06G-P4-4995-KR). They all have the same ACX2.0+ twin fan cooler design (triple 8mm heatpipes running through the radiator).
SC edition features a factory overclock for higher speed, and the SC+ edition features same higher speed as the SC but also comes with a metal backplate. The metal backplate is an optional extra, it's said to improve cooling slightly but by how much I don't know. It also reduces graphics card sag.
Perfect ! Thanks, I'll probably buy it then. I just hope I'll be able to OC it to the SC speed.
Hey everyone,
You all helped me with building my very first PC two years ago. I'm running an i5-3570K@3.4ghz. and a 4GB Windforce GTX 770. I'm wondering if I should be looking into upgrading my graphics card so that I can continue to play all of my games at 60fps/1080p/ultra. I can play at almost-maxed to max settings at 60 in most games, but it's been about two years since I last upgraded gpus and I'm gonna have a little extra money this summer (my budget would be about $650-700 for a new gpu). What do you think, GAF? Time for an upgrade to something better or should I play the waiting game? What would you recommend I upgrade to? Note: I don't really care about anything higher than 1080p at the moment. That's my standard.
You all helped me with building my very first PC two years ago. I'm running an i5-3570K@3.4ghz. and a 4GB Windforce GTX 770. I'm wondering if I should be looking into upgrading my graphics card so that I can continue to play all of my games at 60fps/1080p/ultra. I can play at almost-maxed to max settings at 60 in most games, but it's been about two years since I last upgraded gpus and I'm gonna have a little extra money this summer (my budget would be about $650-700 for a new gpu). What do you think, GAF? Time for an upgrade to something better or should I play the waiting game? What would you recommend I upgrade to? Note: I don't really care about anything higher than 1080p at the moment. That's my standard.
You can already hit 60 in most games nearly maxed out? Are there any future games you're worried about? I'd wait until your GTX 770 feels older, unless you can resell your GTX 770 for a nice amount of money or something.
NOPEEEEEE
2133 for $5 is good.
I avoid RAID on desktops and do backups.
I wouldn't get any reference card if I could avoid it, although the 980Ti reference is ok. Can you just flip the card and buy a 980Ti? Difference can't be that much is it?
Main difference is:
ref
nonref cooler
longdi
Banned
Those using the 'older' AMD GCN cards, here is their new drivers which supposedly helped with improving the 390X performance.
AMD is not releasing it for 'old' (2 series) GCN cards.
I have installed it, and it works on 290X. It also enables VSR and FRC.
http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/vg...5_20.zip?_ga=1.242241866.979263208.1419698452
http://www.asus.com/us/Graphics_Cards/R9390XDC28GD5/HelpDesk_Download/
AMD is not releasing it for 'old' (2 series) GCN cards.
I have installed it, and it works on 290X. It also enables VSR and FRC.
http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/vg...5_20.zip?_ga=1.242241866.979263208.1419698452
http://www.asus.com/us/Graphics_Cards/R9390XDC28GD5/HelpDesk_Download/
Kane Zakharov
Banned
So right now I plan to get an EVGA Supernova 650W GS and the Corsair Air 540, which makes my build end up as the following:
CPU: Intel Core i5 3570k
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro H100i
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H
Memory: 8GB DDR3
HDD: 7200RPM
GPU: ???
Case: Corsair Air 540
Power Supply: EVGA Supernova 650W GS
Monitors: 1080p IPS
The R9 300 series being released, and with a budget of ~320 US dollars, should I go for an MSI 970 or a non-reference 390 instead?
I've been wary of the 3.5GB issue and to my understanding the Kepler cards not keeping up as well as they are expected to in some games, but at the same time I haven't had any VRAM issues with my 2GB 7870 XT and want something that's fairly quiet overall, which the MSI 970 seems to be. I also have no plans to go beyond 1080p any time soon if that helps.
CPU: Intel Core i5 3570k
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro H100i
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H
Memory: 8GB DDR3
HDD: 7200RPM
300GB 
Case: Corsair Air 540
Power Supply: EVGA Supernova 650W GS
Monitors: 1080p IPS
The R9 300 series being released, and with a budget of ~320 US dollars, should I go for an MSI 970 or a non-reference 390 instead?
I've been wary of the 3.5GB issue and to my understanding the Kepler cards not keeping up as well as they are expected to in some games, but at the same time I haven't had any VRAM issues with my 2GB 7870 XT and want something that's fairly quiet overall, which the MSI 970 seems to be. I also have no plans to go beyond 1080p any time soon if that helps.
Thought so, i'll just buy two 2tb hard drives instead
Well, that's understandable seeing as the 390X is quite literally nearly identical to the 290X barring VRAM and VBIOS.. Will this make a difference for non 290/290X cards?
Nostremitus
Member
Sorry, DP.
Nostremitus
Member
Here, you go. This is while using Unigen Heaven.
It doesn't seem to be throttling, it just dips between scenes... So, what could be causing the lower performance all of a sudden if it's not the 15.5 drivers?
EDIT: It was the drivers. I downloaded the drivers listed below and my card is a beast again. Hell, it now scores a few hundred points more than it ever has.
Do these work with the 4GB cards?
Can anyone advise me here?
With the help of the people in this thread, I built a custom PC months ago that has been performing wonderfully. I've ran into an issue over the past month where when I power the button in PC, nothing happens. The system stays completely turned off. Usually I'll open of the case and start unplugging and replugging various connections. After a minute of messing around, eventually the thing powers on.
This usually happens for me every couple of days. It just seems random. Sometimes it powers on with no issue and sometimes it won't turn on unless I open up the case as I've mentioned.
Is it very likely that there's an issue with my PSU? That would be a shame because it's supposed to be a pretty high quality PSU (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003H4QPDC/?tag=neogaf0e-20)
Has anyone ever had this issue?
With the help of the people in this thread, I built a custom PC months ago that has been performing wonderfully. I've ran into an issue over the past month where when I power the button in PC, nothing happens. The system stays completely turned off. Usually I'll open of the case and start unplugging and replugging various connections. After a minute of messing around, eventually the thing powers on.
This usually happens for me every couple of days. It just seems random. Sometimes it powers on with no issue and sometimes it won't turn on unless I open up the case as I've mentioned.
Is it very likely that there's an issue with my PSU? That would be a shame because it's supposed to be a pretty high quality PSU (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003H4QPDC/?tag=neogaf0e-20)
Has anyone ever had this issue?
StarlordDial
Member
Sooooo can anyone recommend me other ATX Full Tower cases for me ? I'm leaning towards NZXT Phantom 820 as my case
My setup will be two 980ti's but will buy the 2nd 980ti later
I will need a larged top panel as my cpu fan will be an nzxt kraken x61 replaced with 4 noctua fans
The corsair 780t looks nice and seems people like the phanteks entho too
My setup will be two 980ti's but will buy the 2nd 980ti later
I will need a larged top panel as my cpu fan will be an nzxt kraken x61 replaced with 4 noctua fans
The corsair 780t looks nice and seems people like the phanteks entho too
Nostremitus
Member
longdi
Banned
Tbh, i did not even benchmarked between old drivers and this '3-series' drivers. A quick run of TW3 & FFXIV benchmarks encountered no issues. My guess, it depends if 380X and below cards sees any improvements over their 280 counterparts, then this drivers may help. I have also not read reviews of these said cards. No harm trying, only 'problem' is the drivers will show your card as an Asus one.
Yes they work on my 290X 4GB perfectly.
StarlordDial
Member
Oh man that looks slick as hell :0
Welp seems 780t is real nice so i think i'm just gonna go with that .... Phantom 820 is soooo big it seems like
Thanks, updating the BIOS seems to work, I had to activate the Profile 1 in the XMP section and now is working at the speed and latencies it should.
Btw, one problem I had is that the computer wouldn't boot if I had the integrated Intel graphics enabled, every time it reached the post screen the computer reset itself...
Same problems, did the same stuff you did, was the PSU. Don't know what the problem with it was, just replaced it.
Nostremitus
Member
THANK YOU!!!
The problem I was having was completely due to the drivers!
old drivers with overclock
new drivers without overclock
new drivers with overclock
Drama Zed Nod
Member
Hi Guys,
Hopefully one of you knowledgeable chaps can clarify something for me.
Recently the Nvidia drivers changes to allow different options for G-Sync (G-Sync in windowed mode etc).
it also seems possible to have V-Sync active as well as G-Sync now?
I read that here:
http://www.pcper.com/news/Displays/NVIDIA-G-Sync-Update-New-Monitors-Windowed-Mode-V-Sync-Options
So my question is, if i have G-Sync on in the Nvidia Control panel should i have V-Sync set to on or off in game now?
Hopefully one of you knowledgeable chaps can clarify something for me.
Recently the Nvidia drivers changes to allow different options for G-Sync (G-Sync in windowed mode etc).
it also seems possible to have V-Sync active as well as G-Sync now?
I read that here:
http://www.pcper.com/news/Displays/NVIDIA-G-Sync-Update-New-Monitors-Windowed-Mode-V-Sync-Options
So my question is, if i have G-Sync on in the Nvidia Control panel should i have V-Sync set to on or off in game now?
Nostremitus
Member
If it's anything like Freesync, vsync on only activates when outside the variable refresh window.
Roomy midtower ATX cases can fit two GPUs and a big radiator easily, so do you actually need an even larger "full tower"? If not, Enthoo Evolv ATX perhaps? I think it looks better than any of the larger cases.
http://www.phanteks.com/Enthoo-EVOLV-ATX.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzfZdf2nfHE
The Fractal Define S has tons of space plus soundproofing as well.
anchorman128
Member
Alright, after all of the speculation on monitors, and simply upgrading my GPU, I decided to put my old PC on Craigslist.
Have a buyer coming for it at $700 (z68, i5 2500k. GTX 760). I decided to just start fresh instead of throwing another GPU in the current config.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($328.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H60 54.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97N-Gaming 5 Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($128.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($93.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($649.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo EVOLV ITX Mini ITX Tower Case ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($61.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1383.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-23 09:57 EDT-0400
I am getting the processor from microcenter so that'll save $50 bucks, and I am just putting that reference 980ti in there as a place holder, as I'll either go for the ti or Fury X depending on benchmarks. I already have a 2TB 3.5'' HDD and a 128GB SSD too.
Do you guys think I'm doing the right thing? Upgrading the whole setup for an extra 700-800 bucks vs spending 650 for simply a GPU upgrade? I figured I'd move to mini itx, since if I'm upgrading, why not? If the Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX was out, it'd be a different story.
Have a buyer coming for it at $700 (z68, i5 2500k. GTX 760). I decided to just start fresh instead of throwing another GPU in the current config.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($328.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H60 54.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97N-Gaming 5 Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($128.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($93.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($649.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo EVOLV ITX Mini ITX Tower Case ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($61.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1383.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-23 09:57 EDT-0400
I am getting the processor from microcenter so that'll save $50 bucks, and I am just putting that reference 980ti in there as a place holder, as I'll either go for the ti or Fury X depending on benchmarks. I already have a 2TB 3.5'' HDD and a 128GB SSD too.
Do you guys think I'm doing the right thing? Upgrading the whole setup for an extra 700-800 bucks vs spending 650 for simply a GPU upgrade? I figured I'd move to mini itx, since if I'm upgrading, why not? If the Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX was out, it'd be a different story.
Train of Midnight
Banned
Haven't built a PC in a few years. Do developers make use of hyper-threading at all yet, or is that an unnecessary feature?
So far it looks like the 4690k for me this year.
So far it looks like the 4690k for me this year.
For games right now it is a definite no. It's possible it could change with DirectX 12. The 4690K is easily recommended over the 4790K to save money, especially for games and if you don't mind overclocking.
If you do anything else like video editing then an i7 could be recommended for the hyperthreading.
Train of Midnight
Banned
Nope, just games. Also is the 980ti worth it? I think I'll need it for the 6GB VRAM for VR. I mean business with getting my rig ready for the Vive.
metareferential
Member
Finally got my second 980ti in the mail, upgraded my psu as well and now sli is ready to go.
Any tip or advice? Aside from the usual warning about support I mean.
Any tip or advice? Aside from the usual warning about support I mean.
anchorman128
Member
Yes, in your case it probably would be worth it. Not for the extra vram, but for the extra power for pushing FPS in VR.
Wear a seatbelt so you aren't blown away by the FPS you'll be getting.
SHADES
Member
Well, the HTC Vive consists of two 1080x1200 screens each running at 90Hz. A single screen wouldn't be very demanding, but two of them would require a strong GPU. The Oculus Rift has the same resolution and refresh rate, they recommend a GTX 970 or R9 290 at the least. Not sure if you will actually end up using near 6GB of VRAM across the two screens unless you're playing at extremely high settings on the most demanding games.
If you have the money to spend, the GTX 980 Ti (or AMD Fury) would ensure that you could play at higher settings and framerate, if nothing else.
Train of Midnight
Banned
Holy crap SLI 980tis. And I thought I was overdoing it!
Haven't had a good experience with SLI on my current 560tis, so I want one card to get the job done and last me a good couple years. Thanks for the suggestions.
Haven't had a good experience with SLI on my current 560tis, so I want one card to get the job done and last me a good couple years. Thanks for the suggestions.
metareferential
Member
I've always been a single-gpu gamer, but I wanted to try something else for a change.
Train of Midnight
Banned
Well sweet. Let us know how it goes.
For those who have/saw one, how's the noise for gigabyte 970 g1?
I'm thinking of either that or the MSI one for my build.
As far as I know, the MSI turns off the fan on idle so it's definitely quieter, but if the noise isn't too loud, I may get the gigabyte for (from what I've read) better cooling and OC potential..
I'm thinking of either that or the MSI one for my build.
As far as I know, the MSI turns off the fan on idle so it's definitely quieter, but if the noise isn't too loud, I may get the gigabyte for (from what I've read) better cooling and OC potential..
Actually, a friend just purchased one and told me about this last night.
I'm not 100% sold on whether it's working correctly. I get the distinct feeling it may be skipping frames at that setting.
Is it setup like Eyefinity/NVSurround? Or is it the same picture on two screens?
Train of Midnight
Banned
It renders each eye separately, because each eye is at a slightly different viewpoint, to give you a sense of depth.
I think a little bit of both. Don't quote me on this, but I think both screens display nearly the same picture, but skewed at a slightly different camera angle so technically both are different images that the PC needs to separately render, so when viewed through the headset it tricks the eyes' perspective into thinking it's 3D. If it was just the same 1080x1200 picture but mirrored exactly, it probably wouldn't need so much horsepower.
Just pulled the trigger on the Asus MG279Q monitor in anticipation of picking up a fury x tomorrow if I can.
Hope the jump to 1440p with freesync is worth it.
Was hoping to get batman originally had it preordered on ps4 but with the issues that games having right now I guess I'll be waiting.
Hope the jump to 1440p with freesync is worth it.
Was hoping to get batman originally had it preordered on ps4 but with the issues that games having right now I guess I'll be waiting.
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